The Water Conservation Order (WCO)
Te Waikoropupū Springs have some of the clearest water ever measured on earth. Last year the Springs received a Water Conservation Order (WCO) from the Environment Court. The WCO gives a special cloak of protection that which councils must abide by when considering resource consents.
Yet if the Fast Track Approvals Bill were to pass into law the way it is written, the Government would be able to bypass the protections the WCO gives Te Waikoropupū Springs.
We urge the Cabinet and the joint Ministers:
- Not to list Sams Creek Mine in Schedule 2 of the Fast-Track Approvals Bill, in recognition of the significant risk to Te Waikoropupū Springs
- To amend the Fast Track Approvals Bill (by Supplementary Order Paper if necessary) so that activities that are contrary to any of the sixteen Water Conservation Orders are specifically excluded from the Bill.